The Sacrifice
by Adarian
Summary: When a demon chooses Anders as its vessel for coming into the world, Nathaniel risks everything to save him. Written for a kink-meme prompt. A little body horror, beware!


They panted in exhaustion. Anders bent over as he tried to catch his breath.

"I told you we should have brought the Commander," he groaned.

"It was just supposed to be one measly little demon," Nathaniel protested, "No one said anything about several undead Avaar lords."

Anders shook his head, chuckling. He stood back up, kissing him lightly. Nathaniel smirked, kissing deeper, pulling him into his arms.

"You're always sexiest when you're filthy," Nathaniel murmured, grabbing the back of his head.

"And you, my dear, are horniest after you've fought something," Anders teased.

"You're the exhibitionist."

"That doesn't mean I want to have sex in a crypt."

Nathaniel raised his eyebrow and Anders laughed, "Who am I kidding?"

Nathaniel pushed him against the wall, kissing him as he reached underneath his robes, pushing them above his hips.

Anders was too distracted by Nathaniel's hot breath on his neck to notice him push his pants just past his knees, his cock already in hand as he coated it. They met together desperately, Nathaniel pushing inside of him with a satisfied grunt.

Anders wrapped his legs around him, leaning his head back as Nathaniel thrust.

"Harder," Anders ordered.

Nathaniel kissed him as he quickened his motions, thrusting as deeply as he could. He wrapped his hand around the mage's cock, pumping roughly.

Anders moaned happily, looking deeply into his eyes.

"I love you," he groaned.

"I love you more than my life," Nathanial rasped, his legs buckling as he grew close. Anders gasped, his orgasm surprising him as Nathaniel spent himself inside of him.

They collapsed on the ground together, happily entwined.

"Let's go home, love," Anders purred, "I've had enough of the dark."

oOoOoOo

Anders screamed as he woke from the bed, sweating profusely. Nathaniel was on duty; he was alone in his room. He panted, trying to understand the images of blood, of gore, of the hands reaching out from beyond.

He caught his breath, a chill catching in his body. He wrapped himself back in the blankets and willed himself back to sleep.

oOoOoOo

Anders could hear Nathaniel outside the door, pacing as he talked to the Commander. He could barely make out the words, his stomach aching, his blood beating in his ears. He tried to vomit, dry heaving into the washbasin.

He laid down on the floor, the chill returning to his body.

The door opened and Nathaniel came by his side, wiping his forehead with a cool cloth.

"Get back to bed," Nathaniel murmured, "You need rest."

"I'm fine," Anders protested, his knees giving out as he tried to stand.

Nathaniel carried him in his arms, bringing him back into the bedroom. Anders shivered as the blankets were pulled around him.

He heard Nathaniel say quietly to the Commander, "He needs a healer. It's been a week. He's not getting any better."

Anders blinked. A week? How long had he been out?

He drifted out of consciousness, feeling Nathaniel's hand on his shoulder.

The same dream haunted him, the black hands pulling from the inside of his stomach, ripping him in two. He screamed, but he could not wake up.

oOoOoOo

Dawn was breaking when he opened his eyes again. He sighed in relief. The nausea had finally subsided. Nathaniel was sleeping fitfully beside him, the morning sun cast across his face.

Anders smiled. It was finally over. He couldn't remember ever being so sick in his life. He hoped it wasn't anything too contagious, but Nathaniel seemed healthy enough.

Anders sat up, finding his bed clothes were awfully taught against his belly. He frowned. He had never heard of someone gaining weight over the flu. He stood, walking to the mirror.

He lifted his shirt and saw the lump in his belly.

He caught his breath. He pushed down on the swelling, but it did not give. He stepped back, fear flooding his heart. It was a tumour. He was dying.

But how had it grown so quickly? Half of his belly was swollen. He had never heard of anything like this.

Nathaniel stirred, hearing his fast breathing. Nathaniel stared, seeing Anders standing, his shirt still in his hand.

Nathaniel tried to keep calm, his face stoic as he said, "I'll get the healer."

oOoOoOo

Anders laid on the bed, his head spinning. His belly felt even more swollen, pressing down on his bladder and stomach. He fought the urge to vomit, his hands on his lump.

Nathaniel returned, the elderly mage and the Commander behind her.

"Not Wynne," Anders groaned, "Of all the-"

"Quiet," Wynne snapped, "Lie still. Move your hands."

Nathaniel sat beside him, his hand on his shoulder as Wynne bent over, her hands glowing lightly blue as she placed them on his extended belly.

It was then he felt it move.

He sat up right, his body weak as he shook.

"What the shit was that?" Anders demanded.

Wynne stepped back, "I need to talk to the Commander privately. I won't be a minute."

Anders' heart beat faster he thought it could. His hands stayed on his belly, the bloating growing, the feeling of...the feeling of a creature beneath his skin. Nathaniel held him, kissing his forehead.

After the longest two minutes of his life, Wynne returned, the Commander behind her. Anders heaved on the floor, Nathaniel holding his hair back.

Wynne said quietly, "My poor child, I don't know how to say this..."

"Say it," Nathaniel insisted.

"Anders," Wynne said gently, "There is a baby growing inside of you."

Anders went into shock, his body numb as the kicking continued.

Nathaniel stood, cursing, "Damn you, old woman, if this is your idea of a joke, I shall flail you myself."

Wynne said softly, "It is no joke."

"How did this happen?" Nathaniel asked.

"I sense a demon's presence," Wynne replied, turning from them, "A demon is attempting to take control of your body, Anders. It's killing you."

"How do we stop it?" Nathaniel demanded.

"There is no way this ends well," Wynne said softly, "If the demon has taken hold for this long...if we rip it from him, it may kill him or make him Tranquil. But what is inside you...whatever it is...we have little time left."

Anders felt faint, his head spinning.

This is it, he thought to himself, this is my death. I thought we had more time...

"Nate," he pleaded, slipping into unconciousness.

oOoOoOo

Nathaniel grabbed him as he fell back, holding him in his arms as his breath went shallow.

"Tell me what to do," he begged Wynne, "Tell me what to do and I will do it."

"The child is growing from his life force and quickly. It will not be much longer. When it is born, it will take the last of Anders' life. When it is born, we will slay it."

"I'm not leaving him like this," Nathaniel pleaded, "I will not leave him to die like this. Maker...this is my fault. He shouldn't pay the price. Let me do something."

Commander Tabris looked at Wynne and said, "We'll kill the demon in the Fade."

Wynne shook her head, "This isn't like Connor. Anders is so far gone. Even if he-"

"Send me," Nathanial demanded, "Let me save him."

"It might kill you," Wynne warned.

"I don't care," Nathaniel whispered, "Just help me."

Wynne reached into her bag and said, "Get the Dalish woman and all the lyrium you can find. Now."

It felt like hours until all was prepared, even if it was only a few moments. Nathaniel lay beside the unconscious Anders, the mages casting the spell as he drank the lyrium. He felt sick to his stomach as he started drifting asleep, reaching out to Anders as it went dark.

When Nathaniel opened his eyes, he was surprised to find himself in a woodland cottage, the birds singing on a warm spring's day. He walked into the bedroom, finding Anders asleep peacefully in the bed. He smiled, sitting on the bed, and leaned in to kiss him.

"Did you think it would be that easy?" A rumbling voice questioned him.

Nathaniel turned, the image fading as the demon appeared before him. Anders lay on the ground, whimpering, his belly pulsing.

"It will not be long now until my new form is ready," the demon said proudly, "The mage had been a good host, it is a shame that he must die."

"Why him?" Nathaniel questioned, "why a child?"

"I need a fully mortal body to survive in your world. A fully human body. His will was too strong for me to enthrall him, but his lust attracted me so. He was strong enough, there was enough magic in his blood. I would have preferred a female host, it makes things...less messy. But I was dying, I took what I had."

Nathaniel's heart pounded as he asked, "The child is...mortal?"

The demon replied, "My magic can only create so much. A fully human child, with two mortal parents."

Nathaniel's heart stopped as he processed this information.

He turned to the demon and whispered, "Take me instead."

"What?" The demon laughed.

"The child will take years to be strong enough for you," Nathaniel reasoned, "I am a grown man, a powerful man. I am noble born. Let him live, him and the child, and you can have me, body and soul. Forever."

"An interesting proposition," the demon said, coming closer as it circled around him, "You make a tempting offer, though I would have preferred a mage."

"Take me," Nathaniel begged.

The demon glanced over at Anders and his still form gasped, stirring. The demon came to Nathaniel, who lowered his head, his hands shaking.

"No," Anders pleaded, trying to get to his feet, "No!"

As the demon loomed, ready to take Nathaniel into its embrace, Nathaniel felt the sword appear in his hand. Without thinking, he swiped it across the demon, the creature screaming as it fell. Nathaniel kicked it over, stabbing through its heart as it faded into dust, the wind blowing it from them.

The dream was starting to fade and Nathaniel ran to his side, holding him.

Nathaniel whispered, kissing him, "Come back to me."

oOoOoOo

Anders woke, the pain in his abdomen shooting through his body.

"Holy shit," he swore, "What the shit is happening?"

Wynne looked at him in surprise, "You're...you're alive? Well, Anders, you're going into labour."

"And how does my body think that's going to happen? Am I supposed to shoot it out my ass?" Anders shouted.

"I'm going to cut you open and pull it out," Wynne said.

"Shit, shit, shit," Anders cursed, "Shit. Where's Nate? Where is he?"

"He's in the other room," Wynne said, "He's fine. Can you do this, Anders?"

"Shit," he groaned, tears rolling down his face.

"Good," she replied, wiping the knife clean, "This is going to sting a bit."

oOoOoOo

Nathaniel woke with a gasp, Commander Tabris holding him down in the bed as he tried to push her off.

"Where is he?"

"He's fine," she protested, "They're both fine."

Nathaniel's face softened and she let him rise. He ran from the room, hearing the faint cry of an infant. He went into Anders' room, his heart skipping a beat as he saw Anders lying on the bed, his upper body covered in blood soaked bandages.

In a chair beside him, Wynne sat, holding a bundle in her arms. To his surprise, she was crying.

"I can't believe it," Wynne whispered, "There's no demon. She's perfectly and utterly human."

"We have a girl?" Nathaniel asked hoarsely.

Wynne held the child to him and his took the baby, his hands shaking. He laughed out, tears streaming down his face. She had his nose, his dark hair. This was his daughter, without a doubt in his mind.

"I'll leave you two alone," she said, smiling as she went to the door.

"Wait," Nathaniel said, "When I was in the Fade..."

Wynne turned as he continued, "I was going to give myself to the demon in exchange. But something happened. I suddenly had a sword. I managed to kill it. How...why..."

"There are spirits in the Fade beyond demons," Wynne reminded, smiling to herself, "Spirits of our greatest virtues. One must have seen your sacrifice and decided that you were noble enough to save."

Nathaniel looked at her in puzzlement and she left the room.

He sat down beside Anders, who smiled at him weakly.

"What the shit just happened, Nate?" Anders groaned.

Nathaniel shook his head, looking down at the baby, "I don't know. I thought I lost you...but...oh Anders, she's beautiful."

Nathaniel lay beside him, holding the child in between them. Anders' face softened and smelled the top of her head. She cooed quietly.

"We don't have to keep her," Nathaniel said softly, "This has been...a horrific experience for you to say the least. I don't want you to have to spend your life looking at child that only reminds you of this."

Anders said quietly, "She reminds me of you."

Nathaniel hesitated before stroking his cheek.

"I want her," Anders whispered, "I know what she nearly cost you, what we both nearly cost you."

"I would have done it," Nathaniel replied, "A hundred times over."

"I know," Anders said.

The child fell asleep as the three rested together.

"We're doing this?" Anders asked nervously.

"I'm in if you're in."

Anders sighed tiredly, "I tell you, Nate. Next time, we're adopting."


End file.
